EcoDry Agroecology, Water & Resilience

EcoDry Research meeting Coventry Wednesday 26th Feb 2014Dr Ulrich Schmutz, Garden Organic & Coventry Universityuschmutz@gardenorganic.org.uk, ulrich.schmutz@coventry.ac.uk

Short Food Supply Chains

Short Food Supply Chains

Urbanisation

04/13/23 10

Crises and response• Crises in farming e.g. Foot and

Mouth, BSE• Over half of all adults are obese

or overweight – almost 24million adults

• But recently, improvements in food culture

• National and regional strategies for sustainable farming and food

• Recommendation from the South East strategy for sustainable farming and food for separate London food strategy.

• Establishment of Mayoral London Food Board in 2004

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Product innovationsNew spaces

The Urban Gardner'sfavourite tool

Food and Fuel

Land use choices - we could do this?

Or better this?

Example

Solar cars (roof area of cars in the UK available for solar panels)

UK number (million)

lenth m

width m

area m2

solar active

m2 ha

Mega Watt solar

cars 28,700,000 4.3 2 8.6 2 23% 5,740other 5,800,000 12 2.5 30 10 33% 5,800total 34,500,000 11,540 11,540

currently installed 1,000

Using dry and marginal landsperennial crops

Perennial crops for dry lands

Afghanistan (www.plantforpeace.org)

Perennial rootstocks for dry lands

Perennial rootstocks for dry lands

Perennial rootstocks for dry lands

http://www.slideshare.net/SridharGutam/evaluation-of-salinity-stress-tolerance-in-mango#

Perennial rootstocks for dry lands

Using dry and marginal landsgreenhouses

COST Near Neighbour Countries

Al-Balqaa Applied University/ Faculty of Agricultural Technology , Jordan

Cairo University, Egypt